Archive for March, 2009
Staging Your Las Vegas Home For A Sale
March 26th, 2009 | 
Author: Staging Your Las Vegas Home For A Sale
Putting your Las Vegas home on the market is one thing, but adequately preparing it for buyers is a whole different matter. Home staging is the term used by real estate professionals to help prepare your house so that it will look its absolute best. Realtors will tell you that buyers usually make a decision about a home within the first ten seconds of their visit. Therefore, a wonderful first impression is imperative if you are to sell your home quickly. Should you stage your Las Vegas home? If so, what exactly is involved with home staging?
Although your real estate agent or broker is knowledgeable and skilled on how to market your Las Vegas home, they may not be particularly adept at interior design. That is where a home staging professional comes in. If you use one, they will work toward helping you eliminate clutter, rearrange furniture, and improve your home?s curb appeal. This may involve moving a painting from one wall to another, removing a bulky chair out of a crowded room, trimming the front yard shrubbery, etc. In some cases a Las Vegas home staging professional may recommend that you bring in additional furniture, but you must realize that there is an extra cost involved if you choose that option.
Your real estate agent should be able to refer a home staging professional to you. Most Las Vegas home staging professionals will offer a free written estimate of their recommendations and services. Ask for references from the home staging professional and call them to verify their work.
If you choose a professional who truly excels at home staging, you could recoup the costs of this service through a higher selling price.
Technorati Tags : staging vegas professional their
Posted in 
Texas Apartment Market
Texas Apartment Market
All Texas metro markets report current overall occupancies above 90%PRCTG%, with Austin leading the market at 93.39%PRCTG%. The lowest occupancy is found in the Dallas/Fort Worth market at 90.35%PRCTG%. Austin also leads the Texas markets in terms of rental rates, reporting the highest rents at %0.930 per square foot (psf). Average rents in the other metro markets are all below %0.870 psf. Monthly absorption was strongest in the Dallas/Ft. Worth market, as 641 units were absorbed in April. San Antonio also posted positive monthly absorption, while the Houston and Austin markets posted negative figures.
Austin Market occupancy dropped 0.07 points over the month, however at 93.39%PRCTG%, occupancy remains 2.10 points higher than in April of 2005. Average rents are currently at %0.930 psf and are %0.002 psf higher than last month and last year’s figures. Absorption dipped into the red this month, as -109 units were absorbed. Annual absorption stands at 3,589 units.
Dallas/Fort Worth Market occupancy is up 0.03 points over the month to 90.35%PRCTG%, and is 1.70 points above last year’s level. Although average rents have remained flat over the last few months at %0.867 psf, they are %0.003 psf higher than the rate seen at this time last year. Monthly absorption of 641 units brings annual absorption up to 13,575 units.
Houston Market occupancy fell 0.27 points to 90.73%PRCTG% over the month. Overall occupancy remains 4.29 points higher than April 2005’s level. Rental rates inched up %0.003 psf over the month and are up %0.027 psf over the year to %0.824 psf, while monthly absorption was -323 units. Absorption over the last twelve months is at 24,542 units.
San Antonio occupancy, at 91.69%PRCTG%, gained 0.08 points over the month and 0.47 points over the year. Rental rates are up slightly over the month, %0.001 psf, to %0.817 psf, which is %0.012 psf higher than last year’s figure. This is the third consecutive month of positive absorption, as 237 units were absorbed in April. Annual absorption totals 3,473 units.
Technorati Tags : absorption month units points
Taking Photos of Your Home for Listings
Taking Photos of Your Home for Listings
If you are considering selling your property, you will need photographs for your marketing efforts. If you are going to take the photographs yourself, here are some tips.
Taking Photos of Your Home for Listings
I love reading National Geographic to see the amazing photographs of far off places I will probably never visit. I consistently play the lotto, but one has to be realistic. Regardless, the photographs are works of art and I often find myself wishing I could go to the location in the photograph. This is true even though I had no knowledge of the place until I saw the photograph and probably would have blanched had anyone suggested such a trip. This is the power of a good photograph.
Photographs of properties in marketing materials should inspire the same type of response from homebuyers. Make no mistake about it, your photographs represent the first impression, known a curb appeal, the buyer will have of your property. Given this fact, it is vital that your photographs present the best aspects of your property. Simply walking out to the curb and firing off a couple snapshots is a mistake of the highest order. Don?t do it!
At this point, you should consider using a professional photographer. They understand issues such as lighting, bordering, spacing and angles. Trust me, they are worth every penny.
Assuming you are going to shoot the pictures yourself, consider the following tips:
1. Lighting is critical. First, make sure there is enough light to detail what you are shooting. On the other hand, try to avoid situations where the entire picture is to bright. Strategic shadows in a corner can add definition and the impression of uniqueness.
2. If you have a view, make sure to take a picture of it. If the view can be seen from inside the home, make sure the photograph shows as much by taking it from the interior. You want the photograph to contain some evidence that the view can be seen from inside.
3. When it comes to the front of your home, don?t take a flat picture. A flat picture is when you shoot the home dead on. Stand off to one side or the other to give it some definition.
4. On interior shoots, add props to the room such as flowers. Make sure drapes and so on are positioned in an attractive manner. Hide all cords. Really hide all pets!
5. Experiment with angles. Taking pictures of your home is not a task to be done as quickly as possible. Take as many photographs as possible and then pick out the best. This is what professional photographers do.
Taking photographs of your property is hardly a difficult task. That being said, if you put a bit of thought and effort into it, you can make your listing stand out from the others on the market.
Technorati Tags : photographs photograph taking picture
Texas Real Estate ? Property in the Big State
Texas Real Estate ? Property in the Big State
Everything in Texas is big, including real estate options. If you?re considering a move to Texas, here is a primer on the state.
Dallas
Dallas is a big city with a definite oil influence. There is a certain over the top feeling about Dallas, but people are pleasant and the city has first-rate services. Make no mistake, living in Dallas is living in a big city. It comes with all the negatives of a big city such as traffic, but all the positives such as professional sports teams and so on. If you prefer living in a big city, Dallas may be a good choice as real estate is surprisingly cheap.
Austin
Austin is the home of the University of Texas and one of my favorite cities. With a definite college town attitude, one can experience an odd mix of the Wild West with the liberal attitudes of college students. The town boasts famous music festivals and, of course, an avid group of college football fans. Eternal optimist, they even think they can beat the Oklahoma University Sooners in 2005.
Houston
Constantly in a friendly competition with Dallas, Houston is a city that stands on its own merits. Those merits, however, are based on the boom or bust nature of the oil industry. When things are going well, Houston is abuzz and grows in leaps and bounds. When things are going bad, the economy suffers and so do the people living there. This boom or bust scenario has led to overbuilding and the city has an organized feel to it. All and all, not a personal favorite, but to each there own.
San Antonio
San Antonio is the big city with the little town feel. Unlike Houston, it is not dependent upon the oil business, which has resulted in some careful urban planning. Now the eighth biggest city in the United States, San Antonio is an up and coming city. Of the big cities in Texas, I would consider San Antonio the best overall.
Texas Real Estate
Overall, the good news is Texas real estate is very reasonably priced. The average home price in Dallas is %260,000, while Austin comes in around %200,000. A single family home in Houston will set you back %150,000 on average, while %220,000 will do the job in San Antonio.
The bad news with Texas real estate involves appreciation. Texas has the lowest real estate appreciation rate from September 2004 to October 2005. With an appreciation rate of a little over 5 percent, not everything is big in Texas. Still, this may be an opportunity to get in on the ground floor, particularly for a great town like Austin.
One would think Texas is a take it or leave it state, but it simply isn?t true. The cities are all unique and a lack of a state income tax makes the low real estate appreciation rates easier to swallow.
Subject To: Buying a Home With No Cash
Subject To: Buying a Home With No Cash
You want to buy a home, but you have very little money saved. What are your options?
Traditional mortgages don’t always require large down payments. If you have a good income, stable job and good credit, you should easily be able to get a traditional mortgage, even without a down payment.
However, if your credit is bad, there are still plenty of options for getting into the real estate market. Despite the mortgage-due-on-sale clause, sometimes a buyer can take over payments on an existing mortgage. It is very unlikely a bank will demand the full mortgage, and risk ending up having to deal with a foreclosure, if monthly payments are being made on time. These sales, called “subject to” sales. In these cases, the seller will require a second mortgage to get their equity out of the home. If there is little or no equity in the home, a contract can be arranged wherein the buyer agrees to pay off the sellers mortgage in a set number of years when they in turn sell the home. Often, this deal is made with the promise of a percentage of the buyers profit going to the seller when the home is sold again.
These contracts allow a highly motivated seller to walk away from their mortgage and either easily get a second mortgage, or start fresh, but receive a check in an agreed upon number of years for a percentage of the homes re-sale. As a buyer, you can assume the mortgage, either live in the home or rent it out, then when it has gained equity, sell it and only then give the person you bought it from a small sum.
While subject-to sales sound complicated, they can really be a great deal for both buyers and sellers with little money.